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The Japanese screen maker aims to be the primary
supplier of high-tech screens for Apple's wildly popular iPhones,
the person told Reuters. Global iPhone sales, notably in China,
have surged to make Apple the most profitable company in
history.
Japan Display wants Apple to shoulder much of the expected 200
billion yen ($1.7 billion) investment in the plant, which aims
to be in operation next year, the source said on condition of
anonymity as the talks remain confidential.
The Japanese company said in a statement that it was constantly
pursuing opportunities to strengthen its competitiveness,
including building a new plant. "No formal decision has been
made regarding any matter that we need to disclose," it said.
The most likely site for the plant is in Ishikawa, central
Japan, the source said. It would have a capacity greater than an
existing facility in Mobara, southeast of Tokyo, which makes
50,000 of the 1.5 by 1.85 metre sheets a month for iPhone 6
screens and other uses, he said.
Japan Display Chief Executive Shuichi Otsuka said last year that
the company needed a new plant as it was reaching capacity at
Mobara.
The company, formed in a government-backed deal in 2012 from the
ailing display units of Sony Corp <6758.T>, Toshiba Corp
<6502.T> and Hitachi Ltd <6501.T>, has endured a rocky spell
since its listing in Tokyo last year.
But Japan Display this month reported a rebound to profit from
two quarters of losses, boosted by demand from Apple and Chinese
smartphone makers, in stark contrast with Japanese competitor
Sharp Corp's <6753.T> shrinking panel business.
Extra orders from Apple would boost Japan Display in its rivalry
with Sharp.
Japan Display's shares jumped 14 percent in early trade on the
latest news before closing up 5.4 percent. Sharp fell 2 percent,
while the benchmark Nikkei share index <.N225> rose 0.4 percent.
Apple and Sharp both declined to comment on the reports.
(Additional reporting by Yuka Obayashi and Ritsuko Ando; Writing
by William Mallard; Editing by Stephen Coates and Mark Heinrich)
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